Corporate Polygamy

I am a polygamist.  I have 3, yes 3 husbands.  One I live with and two I work with.  There are no secrets between us.  My spouses all know about each other, have met on many occasions, and sympathize with each other more than I'd like to think.   So what is an office spouse?  As defined by Wikipedia, albeit slightly edited to protect the innocent, an office spouse is a “co-worker, usually of the opposite sex, with whom one shares a special relationship, such as, confidences, loyalties, shared experiences, and a degree of honesty or openness.”  So, pretty much like a marriage without those pesky vows, white tie ceremony, and extra laundry.

When it comes to work, however, finding the right office spouse is critical to corporate sanity.  So, how do you find the right spouse in the work-place?  I mean unemployment is still pretty high, leaving us with a fishing pond that's less than stocked.   It's here where my 6+ years of corporate polygamy can help.  Following are some polygamy-principals if you will:  

• The best offices spouse are your current office friends.  All you need is like interests, sense of humor, and office proximity (to nurture your budding relationship) –you also need to be about the same age.  Technically I’m an office cougar, but I think you’re ok if your spousal candidate is + / - 8 years of your age. 
• Sexual preference?  I have no experience here as to all three of my spouses are heterosexual.  However, I do think that variety can add an interesting perspective not to mention the value of unsolicited fashion tips.   
• Disposition is probably the most important thing to consider when choosing your office spouse.  Your office spouse’s disposition needs to complement yours.  If you’re an impatient, glass breaking, pain-in-the-ass, you’re probably going to do best with someone who is more diplomatic, patient and well loved.  But if you’re an impatient, glass-breaking pain-in-the-ass, my guess is finding an office spouse is the least of your corporate concerns. 
• Lastly, a limit to the number of office spouses?  I would say 2 (perhaps because I only have 2).  Anything beyond two becomes complicated and just downright confusing.  My caveat here is if your religious beliefs support more than one spouse and / or you in live in Utah, in which case you can have as many office spouses as you can support and / or remember their names.

All in all, I’m a strong proponent of office spouse(s).  The right one can offer a different and unconsidered perspective.  And this goes both ways, where women might be in need of some rational re-direction, men might be in need of some sensitivity training (just sayin’).  And if you pick the right spouse, you might just get some helpful style tips that you otherwise wouldn’t get at home.